Instant Pancake Mix

February 18, 2011

I always feel like such a cheater when I pull out a box of Bisquick or Jiffy Mix. I also feel wasteful – why spend extra money on something that I already have the ingredients for? Same goes for those handy little one-time-use pancake mixes.

I saw one of these at the grocery store last summer and figured it would be perfect for bringing camping with us – fresh pancakes with minimal mess. Even taking the handy container into consideration, it’s hard to justify spending a couple dollars when it could be made for pennies (I think… I didn’t calculate the actual cost of making it from scratch, but I’d assume it’s much, much less).

The homemade version of Bisquick mix is very little trouble to whip up. There are quite a few different versions floating around out there, but since I’m using it for pancakes only, I based it on an instant pancake mix recipe. There are only five ingredients necessary for the mix: flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and sugar. When the time comes to make the pancakes, add an egg and a little milk, shake, and pour. I put mine in an old peanut container.

It had a wide enough opening to add the ingredients directly, which was really nice, and pouring was only a bit of a mess. If I would’ve had an empty ketchup bottle to spare, I could’ve used an idea I saw over at Crafter-Holic, originally from Real Simple magazine:

Adorable. And you could do fun things like make your initials, or a heart, or the classic Mickey Mouse. I probably won’t end up using it, though – you’d need a funnel not only to make the original mix, but then you’d also need to remember to bring it camping with you to add the egg and milk.

I’d highly recommend this recipe to any camper or someone in need of a quick way to make pancakes. I don’t think I’d use it for a leisurely brunch – there are probably tastier versions available – but it’s a simple, quick, tasty way to get your pancake fix.